1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to electrical connector technology and more particularly, to a reconfigurable fiber optic adapter, which allows position exchange between two mating-connection control members that are provided with an Off key or On key, controlling the insertion direction of a mating optical fiber connector.
2. Description of the Related Art
With rapid development of modern communications technology and the Internet, data centers and telecommunications providers are trying hard to provide relative equipment having the characteristics of high density, high transmission speed, high capacity and high intelligence. In order to meet the demands for faster data transmission speed, smaller footprint and lower energy consumption, the physical infrastructure of cabling system has been receiving more attention than ever before. Cable and optical fiber transmission systems are two important transmission media in a data center cabling system. When compared with a cable transmission system, an optical fiber transmission system has the advantages of wider bandwidth, faster transmission speed, longer transmission distance, thinner dimension, stronger anti-electromagnetic interference and better confidentiality. Optical fiber transmission system is bound to become the hottest trend in the future.
Further, a fiber optic adapter is a component widely used in optical fiber transmission systems for the connection of two optical fiber connectors at two fiber optic cables to mechanically couple and align the cores of fibers so that an optical signal can be maximally coupled from the fiber optic cable at the transmitter side to the fiber optic cable at the receiver side. A variety of optical fiber connectors are commercially available, but SC. LC and ST connectors are the most common types of connectors on the market. In many data center applications, small (e.g., LC) and multi-fiber (e.g., MPO/MTP) connectors are replacing larger, older styles (e.g., SC), allowing more fiber ports per unit of rack space. High density MTP/MPO trunk cables with at least 12 fibers or up to 288 fibers in a single cable. When mounting the optical fiber connectors of two fiber optic cables in a fiber optic adapter for connection, the polarity and connection compatibility between the two fiber optic cables must be accurately controlled to prevent optical signal transmission failure.
FIGS. 11 and 12 illustrate a fiber optic adapter according to the prior art. According to this design, the fiber optic adapter comprises a housing A. The housing A comprises a body A1, two plug mouths A01 located in opposing front and rear sides of the body A1, a passage A0 extending through the body A1 in communication between the two plug mouths A01, two keyways A11 respectively located in opposing top and bottom sides in the passage A0 and respectively longitudinally extended from the two plug mouths A01 to a middle part of the passage A0, and two pairs of springy hooks A12 respectively suspending in the plug mouths A01 at two opposite lateral sides. In application, the plug members of the male and female optical fiber connectors are respectively inserted through the plug mouths A01 into the passage A0 to force the respective directional keys thereof into the respective keyways A11 and the respective hook holes thereof into engagement with the respective springy hooks A12, enabling the guide pins at the plug member of the male optical fiber connector to be respectively engaged into the alignment holes in the plug member of the female optical fiber connector for transmitting an optical signal.
Further, the fiber optic cable connected to an optical fiber connector may be used for transmitting or receiving an optical signal. When two mating optical fiber connectors are mounted in the passage A0 in the housing A, the signal-transmitting fiber optic cable at one optical fiber connector in connected in line with the signal-receiving fiber optic cable at the other optical fiber connector. If the signal-transmitting fiber optic cable and the signal-receiving fiber optic cable are installed in the optical fiber connectors in the wrong direction, the polarity is reversed, and the optical fiber connectors that are mounted in the passage A0 in the housing A will be unable to work normally. At this time, the user needs to disconnect the fiber optic cable from the respective optical fiber connector and then correctly installed the fiber optic cable in the optical fiber connector again. During this mounting procedure, it is difficult and complicated to affix the optical fibers to the plug member of the optical fiber connector with epoxy resin and to polish the ends of the optical fibers. Further, this mounting procedure wastes much time and labor.
Therefore, it is desirable to provide a reconfigurable fiber optic adapter that can be reconfigured conveniently to fit the polarity of the fiber optic cable of the mating optical fiber connector.